2016 has not been great so far. We’ve experienced one of the most venomous presidential elections, plus it had a twist ending. And then my grandfather died.
Therefore, I’m completely skipping the pretense of connecting this to video games at all, except to say that I’ve finally gotten around to playing Bloodborne: The Old Hunters. It’s an indictment to the current state of affairs that playing a FromSoftware game is a welcome relief. Going back through one the best games the PS4 has to offer trying to find things that I’d missed the first time around was a genuine delight. World of Final Fantasy continues to be quite good as I roll into the endgame, and Everybody’s Gone To The Rapture was really, really boring.
I can point you towards a couple of good games to check out that you might not know about. Knowing about something cool might distract from the horrible eldritch truths we all now face.
Odin Sphere Leifthrasir is a 2D action RPG that features both an interwoven plot with five playable characters, and some simply stunning hand-drawn visuals. It’s repetitive, but worth your time and eyeballs. It can be found on the PS3, Playstation Vita, and PS4.
Severed is a wildly different first-person action RPG that resembles what Guillermo Del Toro would make if he had to combine Fruit Ninja and Infinity Blade. It’s got excellent dungeons, grotesque monsters, and a great soundtrack, and is available on Vita, Wii U, 3DS, and iOS machines.
The Danganronpa games are what would happen if Ace Attorney had a PCP-induced fever dream while watching the Persona 4 anime adaptation. A bunch of colorful anime characters are stuck in an enclosed environment with a good bit of their memories stolen, and are told to get away with murder if they want to escape. The player characters have to solve each murder as it happens if they want to survive, and without spoiling anything, each murder is more ridiculous than the last. The first two games can be had on Vita and PC via Steam, and a two-pack is coming to PS4 next spring. The third entry is actually an anime series of such fluctuating quality that the English dub track ended with an actual outtake.
In spite of losing the popular vote, Donald Trump won the electoral college votes. I won’t waste your time trying to explain how this happened, except for a couple of factors, namely the rise of fake news on Facebook and the hard to accept fact that millions of people looked at Trump’s record and thought: “Eh, not really a deal breaker. I can deal with this pillock if Hillary gets imprisoned for screwing up.”
Of course, if the electorates betray Trump, Hillary might still have a shot, but it’s thin. Two potential scenario remain: Trump gets betrayed by the electorate this December, or he gets nailed to the wall for felony fraud because of Trump University. Until very recently his Amazon page had the TU logo proudly displayed on the left, now replaced by a picture of our future "overlord."
I wouldn’t count on either of those solutions, though. What you can do is non-violently fight back against the system of the government. Protest, volunteer, write your representative, protect friends and strangers alike from hate crimes. Do what you can to raise money for at-risk charities. Alex Hirsch, creator of the television show Gravity Falls managed to raise $26,000 for Planned Parenthood by drawing at request. So, crack your knuckles and get to work. This isn’t over.
Logan Graham is a junior studying media arts with a focus in games and animation at Ohio University. Please note that the views and opinions of the columnists do not reflect those of The Post. Which video games do you play to destress? Let him know by emailing him at lg261813@ohio.edu.
